CLASS: Character Costume AnalysisEMILY GOVINDEN

Costume Analysis

In this presentation I will be talking about the Misé en Scene of some of the characters within our soap. The characters whose costumes I will be analysing are:

Sophie, (Played by Sofia Cala)

Elizabeth, (Played by Emily Whitford)

Chelsea, (Played by Megan Davies)

Shay, (Played by Phil Martin)

Wayne: The Sarcastic One

The character Shay is from the local college Eastwood High.

The audience can clearly see Shay is not in uniform and is instead wearing scruffy trainers and baggy jeans. This shows he does not care about his look, connoting he does not care too much about his education either.

Shay is also wearing a beanie hat and a side bag. This connotes he isn’t just a regular chavvy teenager but is also quite ‘indie’ in the way he dresses, portraying to the audience he may be ‘indie’ in his interests/Hobbies too.

The hooded jumper is stereotypically worn by the local ‘hooligans’, this allows the audience to identify that Wayne is a menace at college and is very disruptive, as shown in the trailer.

Elizabeth: The Sporty One

The character Elizabeth is from the private college St Antoinette's. The audience can clearly see Elizabeth is from a posh, upper-class

background by the uniform she is wearing. Her costume connotes she is from the private college and therefore her parents must be wealthy to afford this type of education.

Although Elizabeth is in a smart uniform, she also has her top button undone. This could portray to the audience the fact she has come to the field for a stand off with the other school and is ready for a fight. It could also connote that she is part of the ‘popular’ crowd at college and stereotypically as a teen it is seen as ‘uncool’ to have your top button done up.

Elizabeth also has hardly any make up on. This could suggest that she wants to have a natural look for college, giving off a smart appearance. This could also propose her sporty personality. Usually girls who have just been doing sports or who intend to do sports don’t wear make up as it is bad for your skin, this could be the reason behind Elizabeth’s natural look.

Mikaila: The Promiscuous One

The character Mikaila is from the local college Eastwood High.

The audience can see clearly that Mikaila is from the local college by the clothes she is wearing. She is wearing a short mini skirt, showing off her legs to appeal to the opposite sex. This connotes her personality of being promiscuous.

As well as the mini skirt, Mikaila is also wearing shoes with a platform. The platform on her shoes allow her legs to look longer which will appeal to men she wants to attract, also promoting her personality of being promiscuous.

Moreover, Mikaila is wearing a side ponytail in her hair which is stereotypically worn by female chavs.

She is also wearing a heavy amount of make up, making herself look very orange. This is a stereotypical connotation which the audience can see of a chavvy girl. It can also connote she doesn’t come off from a very well-off background as she cannot afford to buy good quality make up which is suited for her skin.

Shay: The Quiet One

The character Matt is from the local college Eastwood High.

Matt is clearly from the local college as he is fitting a scruffy look rather than a uniform. Matt is wearing a hooded coat, hoods are stereotypically worn by local ‘yobs’ and therefore will connote this message to the audience.

Matt is also wearing scruffy Adidas trainers and baggy black jeans. This connotes Matt does not care about looking smart in his appearance but does want to look cool in front of his friends by wearing designer trainers wanting to seek approval from his peers.

Although Matt does not wear anything significant within the trailer to portray his personality of being shy, he promotes the idea through his body language. Throughout the trailer, Matt looks very uneasy of himself and consistently follows other peoples lead, particularly his sister’s, Mikaila.